Biden says fall of Syria’s Assad 'moment of historic opportunity'

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden described the fall of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad as “a fundamental act of justice” after more than a decade of bloody civil war, but also a moment of “risk and uncertainty” for the region. 

"At long last, the Assad regime has fallen,” Biden said Sunday afternoon from the Roosevelt Room of the White House. “It's a moment of historic opportunity for long-suffering people of Syria to build a better future for their proud country.”  

“It’s also a moment of risk and uncertainty, as we turn to the question of what comes next,” he added. 

The more than 50-year rule of the Assad family collapsed on Sunday after rebel fighters seized control of Damascus, dealing a final blow to the longtime Syrian dictator and his Russian and Iranian allies. The rebels’ capture of the Syrian capital capped off their lightning-fast offensive that began less than two weeks ago and was met with little to no resistance from Assad’s forces in the major cities of Aleppo, Hama and Homs. 

The offensive was spearheaded by an Islamist group known as Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, which once had ties to al-Qaeda but severed them in 2016. The United States has designated HTS as a foreign terrorist organization since 2018 and placed a $10 million bounty on its leader, Abu Mohammed al-Golani.  The group’s leaders have pledged to show tolerance for minorities in areas newly under its control and have met with representatives of Aleppo’s Christian community to allay their concerns.  

"They’re saying the right things now," Biden said, adding that the United States will assess not just their words but their actions in the days ahead. 

"It would be a waste of this historic opportunity if one tyrant were toppled only to see a new one rise up in his place. So it's now incumbent upon all the opposition groups that seek a role in governing Syria to demonstrate their commitment to the rights of all Syrians, the rule of law [and] the protection of religious and ethnic minorities." 

Biden said Assad should be held accountable for the actions of his regime, which “brutalized and tortured and killed literally hundreds of thousands of innocent Syrians.” Assad’s exact whereabouts are unknown, with his ally Russia saying only that he had “stepped down” and left the country. Russian state media reported that Assad and his family are in Moscow and have been granted asylum "on humanitarian grounds."

Assad’s stunning departure comes after nearly 14 years of fighting between his government and the rebel forces trying to unseat him. The civil war, which began as a peaceful uprising against Assad’s autocratic rule, killed hundreds of thousands of Syrians and displaced about half the country’s pre-war population. 

Biden pledged support for the security of Syria’s neighbors — Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq and Israel — and pledged to keep US troops in eastern Syria to ensure stability. He also said Washington would “engage with all Syrian groups,” including through the United Nations-backed process established in 2015 to pave the way for a “sovereign and independent” Syria with a new constitution.

The president spoke days after the family of Austin Tice, a freelance journalist believed to be held by the regime since 2012, said a vetted source had confirmed that he is still alive. Biden said Sunday that his administration believes Tice is alive but has not identified his location.